March 19

Justin Trudeau shuffled his Cabinet on March 1. There are those who are wondering if the prime ministerial post itself will be shuffled. The PM’s already tarnished reputation took a major hit when former Attorney General and Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould testified that Trudeau and members of his inner circle repeatedly pressured and hounded her on the SNC-Lavalin scandal. Make no mistake, past governments have had what looked to be criminal prosecutions quashed as well, but times have changed. Ironically, Trudeau’s mantra of promoting diversity could be at least partially responsible for the mess he’s in. Wilson-Raybould is a strong Indigenous woman who wouldn’t play by the ‘old boy’ rules and dared have a mind of her own, and rule with her brain and her conscience. That has become a huge inconvenience for Trudeau, because when it came time to look the other way, she refused to do so and now he and his team are left having to deal with the humiliation.

Hydro One… it was announced by the Ontario government that the CEO’s pay would be capped at $1.5 million per year. The argument from the utility is that it won’t attract strong leaders to want the position. I beg to differ. A $500,000 base salary is more than fair, with an ability to earn another $1 million in bonuses if all incentives are maximized. That’s what it should be about – maximizing efficiencies.

From Hamilton to Shanghai, Tim Hortons has expanded its public presence from one side of the world to another. The restaurant chain has opened its first location in China, in the People’s Square in Shanghai. The expectation is that Tim Hortons will expand to more than 1,500 locations in the world’s largest country within the next 10 years. The new Shanghai location will serve most of the franchise’s traditional offerings as well as some new food and drink options that are unique to the Chinese culture.

Michael Cohen’s testimony before the House Oversight Committee completely confirmed the obvious: that America is politically split virtually and completely in half. Upon watching the hearing, one did not need to look at the bottom of the TV screen to deduce whether the Representative asking Cohen questions was a Democrat or Republican. It was an absolute partisan farce. There is little doubt that millions of Americans dislike – even hate – President Donald Trump. Others continue to stand by him – and love him – and believe he is exactly what the United States needs. Regardless of being for or against Trump, there is no denying that there is virtually no longer even the false pretense of a political middle ground in the U.S. It also became abundantly clear that Cohen is a pathological liar whose ethics and values are all but non-existent. Keep in mind that Congress was taking information from a man who lied to Congress and his going to spend three years in prison because of it. If there are credible witnesses to be heard, bring them on. But if that’s the best there is – then this is all a complete waste of time.